Plaintiffs accuse Perkins Restaurant chain of racial discrimination

In a recent legal battle, an individual accused a popular restaurant chain of racial discrimination, sparking significant attention and raising questions about customer service practices. On February 11, 2026, Rakhshanda Talib filed a complaint against Perkins Restaurant in the Court of Appeals of Ohio, Seventh Appellate District, Mahoning County. The complaint alleged that the restaurant engaged in discriminatory behavior by refusing to seat Talib and her companion near other customers of a different race.

The case traces back to April 2023 when Rakhshanda Talib and Myron Grace visited a Perkins Restaurant in Austintown, Ohio. They claimed they were not promptly attended to and were seated away from the window where “white customers” were located. Feeling discriminated against, they left the restaurant and later contacted Perkins to voice their concerns but received no satisfactory response. Their complaint cited violations of Ohio’s Consumer Sales Practice Act (R.C. 1345.02), accusing Perkins of unfair or deceptive acts by refusing service based on race.

Talib and Grace sought damages for emotional distress caused by what they described as a hostile environment filled with intimidation and racism. Additionally, Grace claimed loss of consortium due to the incident’s impact on their relationship. However, the defendants—Perkins Restaurant along with JDK Management Co., and Phoenix Management Services—filed a motion to dismiss under Civ.R. 12(B)(6), arguing that the plaintiffs failed to establish any deceptive or unfair practices as defined by law.

The court found that the claims made in this case were nearly identical to those dismissed in a prior lawsuit involving similar allegations against Perkins Restaurant. In that previous case, both Talib and Grace had their claims dismissed due to insufficient evidence supporting their accusations of racial discrimination or unfair consumer practices.

Despite Talib’s appeal against the trial court’s decision citing errors such as judicial bias and procedural missteps by appellees, the appellate court upheld the dismissal. The judges concluded that res judicata applied since the issues raised had already been adjudicated in prior proceedings between essentially the same parties over identical grievances.

The appellants’ arguments on appeal included accusations against the trial judge for racism and claims that appellees violated procedural rules; however, these assertions lacked substantive support or new evidence warranting reconsideration. Furthermore, attempts to introduce new legal theories or statutes at this stage were disregarded by the court as improper grounds for appeal.

Ultimately, Judges Carol Ann Robb, Mark A. Hanni, and Katelyn Dickey affirmed the lower court’s ruling without granting any relief sought by Talib. The case number is 25 MA 0079 with Timothy D. Berkebile representing Perkins Restaurant through McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC law firm.